Noida : The Noida police have filed an FIR (First Information Report) against controversial website pgurus following senior journalist and former Tehelka magazine’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Upendra Rai’s complaint against it. The police have primafacie found the website publishing four different malicious stories on him on different dates. What is worrisome is that the website has published “distorted and unverified” stories after accessing through illegal means journalist Rai’s personal bank details, ITR and CIBIL. This is a subject of probe.
Pgurus’ promoters may face imprisonment up to eight years
Under Sections 420 and 509 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 66 of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act 2008, the FIR has been lodged against the website and its owner. According to the police, if pgurus is found to be guilty of violation of the 2008 IT Act, the website’s owner may face at least eight years of the imprisonment. In the meanwhile, the police have found several objectionable matters in the website’s story against journalist Upendra Rai.
Noida police may issue lookout notice
The Noida police have made several attempts to contact website Pgurus’ owner Sree Iyer, but of no success. Sree Iyer claims to be a US citizen. According to experts, if the Noida police fail to get in touch with Sree Iyer, it can, with the help from the Ministry of Home Affairs and Interpol, issue a look out notice against the owner of pgurus website at different domestic and international airports.
Violation of journalistic ethics by pgurus
It should be remembered that on April 23, a legal notice was sent to the website’s owner Sree Iyer. Despite this, he didn’t bother to contact journalist Rai for his comments. As per journalistic ethics, it is essential to verify his or her side of story before publishing about him or her. But the website kept in abeyance all standards of journalism and issued misleading story on journalist Rai. The website has allegedly done this at the instance senior official of the Enforcement Directorate, Rajeshwar Singh and his friends. Even senior BJP leader Subramanian Swami is allegedly involved in this game to malign journalist Rai who has already filed a complaint against the corrupt ED official in the Supreme Court. Hearing on this complaint is about to begin soon.
Upendra Rai’s reaction
Website pgurus has published several baseless and unverified stories on journalist Rai. But it should be known that he is a well-recognized face in the world of journalism. He has been a PIB card holder for the past 11 years. He had been Sahara Media’s CEO for eight years and the CEO and Editor-in-Chief of popular Tehelka magazine for about two years. Besides, he has worked in Airone Aviation as its director. Yet the website raised hue and cry on journalist Rai’s possession of PIB card and airport entry pass. Reacting to it, he said: “He has been in the field of journalism for the past 21 years and has an airport entry pass by virtue of being the director of Airone Aviation (Quality Control). He has never tried to hide these facts.”
He further added that possessing PIB card or holding an airport entry pass, as per his lawyers, is not against the law of the country. “I have a full right to hold such passes,” journalist Rai observed, stating that “if someone has objections to it that means his motive is not right. Still, he is always ready to present himself before any authority if he is summoned in this regard.”
